Leading Counsel (12 March 1982 – after 2006) was an American-bred Irish-trained

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

racehorse and

sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" an ...

. He showed great promise when winning the Leopardstown Stakes on his only start as a two-year-old in 1984 and was regarded as a leading contender for the following year's

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, more commonly known as the Derby and sometimes referred to as the Epsom Derby, is a Group races, Group 1 flat Horse racing, horse race in England open to three-year-old Colt (horse), colts and Filly, fillies. It is run at Ep ...

. In 1985 he won the Minstrel Stakes and started favourite for the

Irish 2,000 Guineas The Irish 2,000 Guineas is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it ...

but recorded his biggest success on his final run of the year when he won the Irish St. Leger. He won one of his three races as a four-year-old before being retired from racing. As a breeding stallion he had considerable success as a sire of

National Hunt National Hunt Racing, also known as Jump Racing, is a form of horse racing particular to many European countries, including, but not limited to: France, Great Britain and Ireland. Jump Racing requires horses to jump over fences and ditches. In ...

horses.

Background

Leading Counsel was a "big, lengthy" brown stallion with white

socks A sock is a piece of clothing worn on the feet and often covering the ankle or some part of the Calf (leg), calf. Some types of shoes or boots are typically worn over socks. In ancient times, socks were made from leather or matted animal hair. ...

on his front legs bred in Kentucky by his owner, Robert Sangster's Swettenham Stud. Sangster had acquired the colt

in utero The uterus (from Latin ''uterus'', : uteri or uteruses) or womb () is the organ in the reproductive system of most female mammals, including humans, that accommodates the embryonic and fetal development of one or more fertilized eggs until bir ...

when buying the broodmare Society Column for $435,000 in January 1982. Leading Counsel was sent to Europe and entered training with

Vincent O'Brien Michael Vincent O'Brien (9 April 1917 – 1 June 2009) was an Irish race horse trainer from Churchtown, County Cork, Ireland. In 2003 he was voted the greatest influence in horse racing history in a worldwide poll hosted by the ''Racing Pos ...

Ballydoyle Ballydoyle is a racehorse training facility located in County Tipperary in Ireland. It is a sister thoroughbred facility to Coolmore Stud, and both are owned by John Magnier, son in law to the racehorse trainer Vincent O'Brien. The current trai ...

. Society Column was a high-class racemare who won seven races including the Chrysanthemum Handicap in 1971 and produced several other good winners including the

Princess Royal Stakes The Princess Royal Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile and 4 furlongs (2,414 metres) on the Rowl ...

winner Sylph. She was a granddaughter of the American broodmare Manzana (foaled 1948), whose other descendants included Typecast and Siberian Express. Leading Counsel was sired by

Alleged In law, an allegation is a claim of an unproven fact by a party in a pleading, charge, or defense. Until they can be proved, allegations remain merely assertions. Types of allegations Marital allegations There are also marital allegations: ma ...

who won the

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe () is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris over a distance ...

in 1977 and 1978. Alleged later became a successful breeding stallion, and a strong influence for stamina: his best winners included

Miss Alleged Miss Alleged (1987–2008) was a French Thoroughbred racehorse who was a Champion in the United States and one of only two fillies to ever win the Breeders' Cup Turf. Background Foaled in Kentucky, she was out of the mare, Miss Tusculum. Her ...

Shantou Shantou, Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanization of Chinese, romanized as Swatow and sometimes known as Santow, is a prefecture-level city on the eastern coast of Guangdong, China, with a total population of 5,502,031 as of the 20 ...

, Law Society,

Legal Case Legal proceeding is an activity that seeks to invoke the power of a tribunal in order to enforce a law. Although the term may be defined more broadly or more narrowly as circumstances require, it has been noted that " e term ''legal proceedings'' ...

and Midway Lady.

Racing career

1984: two-year-old season

The start of Leading Counsel's two-year-old season was delayed after he suffered a broken bone in his foot and he did not appear until October when he contested the Leopardstown Stakes over seven

furlongs A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to any of 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains, or approximately 201 metres. It is no ...

Leopardstown Racecourse Leopardstown Racecourse is a horse-racing course in Leopardstown, approximately south of Dublin city centre, in Ireland. Like the majority of Irish courses, it hosts both National Hunt and Flat racing. Built by Captain George Quin and modell ...

. Despite being matched against several previous winners he was made the 4/6 favourite and won easily by two lengths after being restrained towards the rear in the early stages. At the end of the year he was assigned a weight of 121 pounds in the Irish Free Handicap, 12 pounds behind his stablemate Law Society. The independent

Timeform Timeform is a sports data and content provider located in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. Founded in 1948, it provides systematic information on form to punters and others involved in the horse racing industry. The company was purchased by th ...

organisation gave him a rating of 106 p (the "p" indicating that he was expected to make more than usual improvement) making him 23 pounds inferior to their best two-year-old Kala Dancer but commented that he was "extremely promising" and "likely to make his mark in good company" in the future.

1985: three-year-old season

In the early part of 1985 Leading Counsel was regarded as a serious contender for The Derby and was made favourite for the race in some lists. On his first run of the season, he contested the Minstrel Stakes over one mile on very soft ground at the

Curragh Racecourse The Curragh Racecourse is a flat racecourse in County Kildare, Ireland. The racecourse is home to Ireland’s five most important flat races, known as the Irish Classic Races, Classics. Racing takes place 23 days each year from the end of March ...

in April and won by two lengths from the

Dermot Weld Dermot K. Weld (born 29 July 1948), in Kildare, is a former jockey, and one of Ireland's most successful racehorse trainers, setting the record in 2000 for the most winners trained in Ireland with 2,578. He won the Irish Flat Training Champion ...

-trained Slane Castle. The colt was then moved up in class and distance or the

Ballysax Stakes The Ballysax Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run over a distance of 1 mile and 2 furlongs (2,012 metres) at Leopard ...

at the same course in the following month and sustained his first defeat as he was beaten into second place by

Theatrical Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The performers may communic ...

to whom he was conceding eight pounds in weight. Despite his defeat he was made the 11/10 favourite for the Irish 2000 Guineas on 18 May but finished sixth of the sixteen runners behind the

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States ...

Triptych A triptych ( ) is a work of art (usually a panel painting) that is divided into three sections, or three carved panels that are hinged together and can be folded shut or displayed open. It is therefore a type of polyptych, the term for all m ...

. After an absence of three months Leading Counsel returned in the Persian Bold Stakes over nine furlongs at

Phoenix Park Racecourse Phoenix Park Racecourse was a horse racing venue in Ireland. It was located in the townlands of Ashtown, Dublin, Ashtown and Castleknock in the civil parish of Castleknock on the northern edge of the Phoenix Park in Dublin. The course was foun ...

in late August and got the better of Celestial Bounty to win by a neck. He was beaten in his next two races, finishing unplaced behind

Commanche Run Commanche Run (1981–2005) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse. He was a versatile top-class colt who won a number of Group One races at from one and a quarter to one and three-quarter miles in the 1980s. Background Bred in England, he w ...

in the

Irish Champion Stakes The Irish Champion Stakes ( Irish: Curadh-Dhuais na hÉireann) is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Leopardstown over a distance of 1 mile and 2 furlongs (2 ...

and then finishing second by a head to Nemain in the Blandford Stakes despite hanging left in the closing stages. The 1985 edition of the Irish St. Leger on 8 October was the third running of the race to be open to older horses and attracted a field of six three-year-olds, four four-year-olds, one five-year-old and one seven-year-old. Ridden by

Pat Eddery Patrick James John Eddery (18 March 1952 – 10 November 2015) was an Irish flat racing jockey and trainer. He rode three winners of the Derby and was Champion Jockey on eleven occasions. He rode the winners of 4,632 British flat races, a f ...

Leading Counsel started the 7/4 favourite ahead of the French filly Faburola (

Prix Kergorlay The Prix Kergorlay is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 3,000 metres (about miles), and it is scheduled to ...

) whilst the other runners included Lord Duke ( Gallinule Stakes), Civano (Dutch Triple Crown), Centroline (

Jockey Club Cup A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual ...

) and Wagoner ( Doncaster Cup). After racing towards the rear of the field Leading Counsel moved up into third place behind Flying Trove and Faburola on the final turn. The last quarter mile saw a sustained struggle between Faburola and Leading Counsel, with the colt wearing down the filly inside the final furlong to win by three quarters of a length. At the end of the season Timeform gave Leading Counsel a rating of 122, making him nine pounds inferior to their best stayer

Oh So Sharp Oh So Sharp (1982–2001) was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the English Fillies' Triple Crown in 1985. In a racing career which lasted from August 1984 until September 1985, she won seven of h ...

and fourteen pounds inferior to their top-rated three-year-old Slip Anchor. In the official International Classification he was placed fourteen pounds behind the top-rated Slip Anchor.

1986: four-year-old season

Leading Counsel began his third season by winning the European Racehorse Trial over eleven furlongs at

. In September he was sent to France for the

Prix Foy The Prix Foy is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred colts and fillies aged four years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and ...

over 2400 metres at

Longchamp Racecourse The Longchamp Racecourse (, ) is a 57 hectare horse-racing facility located on the Route des Tribunes at the Bois de Boulogne in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, 16th arrondissement of Paris, France. It is used for flat racing and is noted for ...

and finished a close fourth behind Mersey, Sirius Symboli and Antheus. On 12 October, on his third and final run of the season, he attempted to repeat his 1985 success in the Irish St. Leger but finished fourth of the six runners behind Authaal.

Stud record

At the end of his racing career Leading Counsel became a breeding stallion, beginning his stud career at the Haras de Grand-Cour in France. He had his greatest success as a sire of

horses, with his best progeny including Justified ( Powers Gold Cup), Knockara Beau ( Cleeve Hurdle), Dun Doire ( William Hill Trophy Handicap Chase), Liberty Counsel ( Irish Grand National) and Rodock ( Champion Hurdle Trial).

Pedigree

References

{{Reflist 1982 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in Ireland Thoroughbred family 13-c Irish Classic Race winners